Within the quiet atmosphere of a lounge near London's prestigious dance company, Matthew Ball requests a mint tea. The dancer's posture is effortlessly straight-backed, his arms defined beneath a plain white T-shirt. On stage, ballet dancers can appear as powerful gods, yet often in person they are petite. Not so Ball, whose height is part of his demand for heroic characters and partnering. Possessing fine traits and piercing eyes, there's a hint of a brooding actor about him.
An Apparent Rise to the Pinnacle
Now 31, Ball is experiencing the crest of a career that has progressed seamlessly. Growing up in Liverpool, he faced little ridicule for his childhood interest in ballet. Entering the esteemed training institution at 11, he graduated straight into the troupe and was promoted each year, attaining the top rank of principal in 2018. He has relished taking on meaty dramatic roles, particularly the emotional angst found in a famed choreographer's works.
"Your lungs are burning, your legs get heavy, but it’s really a neural fatigue."
Ball's next featured appearance is as himself, in an "Evening With" event designed to offer behind-the-scenes insights into a performer's craft. He will guide the crowd through a part, demonstrating his mental process while execution. Even in more comedic ballets, the test is profound. "A classic ballet is one of the toughest technically," he notes.
The Psychological Struggle and Post-Performance Feelings
How does he feel after a show, when he has pulled it off? "It's pretty good," he says. "However because I'm trying to extract all the emotion out of it, and get immersed in the role, frequently I do feel self-conscious later. After an intense role I'm always thinking: Wow, what must people think?"
Offstage, Ball is thoughtful, mild-mannered, and prone to laugh at himself. Yet a choreographer previously observed on a "sense of suffering in him." Is there? "I'm quite energetic usually, but I do have a melancholy streak," he reveals. "I somewhat enjoy pessimism sometimes. I've always felt that doubt has been an instigator for positive change."
Early Motivations and Creative Inspirations
His determination originated in youthful setbacks. Not doing well in contests at school made him "driven!" This became motivation to prove he could achieve. Reading the book *Mao's Last Dancer* was a "watershed" moment. "It flipped a switch, it made me go a bit fanatical," he recalls.
An upcoming challenge is creating his own dance works. In his view, "there's nothing wrong with." "Challenging the rules is interesting, but just pretending that they’re not a reality any more – I don’t know how far you can go with that." He aims his work to be filled with substance, drawing ideas from literature, music, and art.
Intimate Performance and Private Partnership
He additionally favors presenting dance in more intimate venues. "It was just really thrilling," he says of a past experience. "You’re so close to the viewers. I felt as if they were thinking: 'That’s a person, and they’re sweating.'"
Ball has created duets with his partner, fellow principal Mayara Magri. The level of trust between them is clear. "We first practiced on a beach," he says of a audacious lift. "It resembled Dirty Dancing." The couple are not typically matched on stage at their home company, which might be healthy. "We’re both quite determined people, so it’s not always smooth sailing," he notes. "Yet I feel like we’re each other’s biggest supporter."
On Social Media and Bodily Perception
On Instagram, fans can see videos from his dance films and images that showcase a sculpted form. Does he care that the response can be a bit objectifying? Not really. "The body is just what we use, so I don’t feel very precious about it," he explains. He relates it to seeing Michelangelo’s David—an object that can be interpreted on various ways.
Ball describes his early self as "eager for success." Did it lived up to his hopes? "I am conscious of how reality is a separate reality to the aspirations you made as a child," he muses. He likely has another decade of performing left. "I guess in the time to come, I want to be a bit more kind with myself."
